Chapter Seven
The Promises of Nocturne

“We need to talk.”

Donghae looked up from his cell phone and stared at Heechul with nervous eyes. He did not like hearing those words, they usually meant he was about to get in trouble and this time he really didn’t know what he had done.

“Okay,” He said quietly, putting his phone aside and sitting up straight. He fiddled with the hem of his hoodie but avoided Heechul’s gaze as he sat down across him on the bed.

He didn’t like getting in trouble. It wasn’t because being punished was a big deal; he could deal with getting his belongings taken away or being grounded or even having to do chores that were awful. He just didn’t like disappointed Heechul. Heechul was everything to him and even though he wasn’t childish like Mir who begged for hugs and kisses or obsessively clingy like Kibum, Heechul meant the world to him. Knowing that he’d done something wrong and Heechul was unhappy about it just made his heart hurt.

“What did I do?” Donghae asked in a hushed voice.

“You’re not in trouble, honey,” Heechul said soothingly, reaching over to ruffle his hair. “It’s just that I wanted to talk about the way you’ve been, uh, not necessarily how you’re treating Key but how you aren’t treating him.”

Donghae frowned and looked at him quizzically. It wasn’t like he was being rude or mean to the newest occupant of the house. He had even stopped pulling Mir and Kibum out of the room whenever Key was around ever since Heechul had told him to knock it off and that they all had to spend time together. He was being civil, to say the least, which was more than enough.

“How am I not treating him?” He inquired slowly.

Heechul took a moment to look around Donghae’s room before answering. His eyes settled on a photo of all the boys on the nightstand and smiled lightly. Donghae was in the middle with his arms wrapped around Henry but his eyes and smile were directed at Mir. He was the oldest and held so much love for all of his brothers. If any of them needed something he was the first to offer his assistance. There was not a bad bone in his body, he was just the sweetest person Heechul knew.

“I know you aren’t doing it on purpose but I can tell that you’re still weary of Key. You’ve seen the way he’s treated your brothers in the past and you’ve put a wall up between the two of you. You have your reservations and that’s alright, but Mir is picking up on it and is copying you in the wrong way.”

“What do you mean? What did Mir do?” Donghae asked as a pit formed in his stomach.

Heechul shifted and pat Donghae’s knee comfortingly knowing that he was going to feel guilty about this. Mir absolutely idolized Donghae and Donghae knew it and would blame himself for anything that Mir did wrong, even if he didn’t truly understand the consequences of his words and actions; he was just a naïve kid.

“Now I’m not saying this is your fault but Mir took your hesitation towards Key and thought it meant that you don’t consider him part of the family. I don’t know exactly what happened but I guess that Mir told Key that they aren’t brothers or even friends,” Heechul explained, leaving out a great majority of the details. He wasn’t going to mention that Key had cried for an hour in his room and was now in a bad mood and being mean to everyone or that Mir was now sulking in his room after being grounded for a week.

Donghae groaned and hide his face in his hands. How could he explain that